A selection of short films from throughout the career of renowned British filmmaker Peter Greenaway

Peter Greenaway, CBE (born 5 April 1942) is a British film director. His films are noted for the distinct influence of Renaissance and Baroque painting, and Flemish painting in particular. Common traits in his film are the scenic composition and illumination and the contrasts of costume and nudity, nature and architecture, furniture and people, sexual pleasure and painful death.

Revolution 1967Intervals 1969Water Wrackets (Excerpt) 1975Windows 1975M Is For Man, Music, Mozart 1991Rosa 1992 Trailer for the multimedia installation : A day in the life of the Castle 2011

Get totally hypnotized by time-lapse images of our crowded streets and skies!

Time-lapse photography is a technique whereby the frequency at which film frames are captured (the frame rate) is much lower than that used to view the sequence. When played at normal speed, time appears to be moving faster and thus lapsing. For example, an image of a scene may be captured once every second, then played back at 30 frames per second. The result is an apparent 30-times speed increase. Time-lapse photography can be considered the opposite of high speed photography or slow motion.

Processes that would normally appear subtle to the human eye, e.g. the motion of the sun and stars in the sky, become very pronounced. Time-lapse is the extreme version of the cinematography technique of undercranking, and can be confused with stop motion animation.

Nigel Kneale who changed television programs and the notions of science fiction in the 1950's and 60's

Way too brief look at the life and work of writer Nigel Kneale who changed television programs and the notions of science fiction in the 1950's and 60's.

Kneale started out writing short stories set on his Isle of Man. His publisher wanted him to follow it up with a novel, Kneale wanted to try and write for the infant television.

His fame came when the BBC had a program go belly up and they needed something to fill the slot, so Kneale pitched the idea for the Quatermass Experiment. It was a radical departure from anything on TV at the time. Here was a show that was more than what the BBC was doing at the time, which was essentially Radio with pictures. In one huge move Kneale changed the face of television by using the medium as best as possible and by presenting adult heroes for adults.

The show was a huge success and the film got lots of attention for it's mixing of horror and science fiction. Rarely had anything been done so graphically. The people and even the BBC were horrified. (The BBC wanted no part of Kneales monster so Kneale had to make the costume and the creature himself)

From there Kneale went on to do an adaptation of 1984 that horrified the country, but had one big fan, the Queen.

The film uses a mix of clips, interviews with experts and with the man himself, to show that Kneale was working decades ahead of everyone else. We see how his Year of the Sex Olympics predates reality TV by a good thirty years. We also see how the stories of superstition and fantasy having a "real" basis gave birth to TV shows like The X-Files(Which tried to get him to write for it but was turned down).

This is a super little film about the man and his work. The only problem is that at 40 minutes it's way too short. Things blow by and we get only passing references to several stories he did. I understand that it was the limits of TV slot it was produced for, but at the same time here is a man who changed culture and he deserves more.

Comedy-Sci-fi by Nigel Kneale about an Alien invasion

Des Kinvig (Tony Haygarth) runs an electrical repair shop in the small town of Bingleton. One day his store is visited by Miss Griffin (Prunella Gee), who is from the planetMercury and in need of Des' help. Kinvig's friend Jim Piper (Colin Jeavons) is a lifelong UFO watcher and is consumed by jealousy when he discovers that Kinvig has encountered extra-terrestrials. It is left intentionally ambiguous whether Kinvig's experiences with aliens are real or the product of an overactive imagination.

The show was produced by LWT, and only ran for one series of seven episodes. It was written by Nigel Kneale (more famous for Quatermass), directed and produced by Les Chatfield, with original music by Nigel Hess.

A young couple move to the countryside and discover a strange mummified animal in the wall of their cottage. The wife increasingly feels that she and her unborn child are in danger.

A young couple move to the countryside and discover a strange mummified animal in the wall of their cottage. The wife increasingly feels that she and her unborn child are in danger.

Baby, broadcast 6 November 1976

The best loved of all the episodes, this kept many a child awake at night; it still has the power to frighten. Young vet, Peter Gilkes (a roaring Simon MacCorkindale (Jaws 3D, 13Hrs) has moved to the country and joined old soak of a vet Dick Pummery (T.P. McKenna from The Beast in the Cellar and Straw Dogs). His pregnant wife, Jo (Jane Wymark), is less impressed, her husband’s exuberant tales of how amazing Dick is in contrast to her more down-to-earth issues with the building work going on in their new house, their baby and a runaway cat. Peter opts to have a go at some DIY and in the absence of the builders starts to knock part of an interior wall down. Within a cavity he finds a large, sealed clay pot and sets to work opening it (‘fetch the kitchen tongs!’)

Within they find the possibly ancient mummified remains of an unidentifiable creature. Goaded by the builders who urge her to get rid of the thing, Jo wants it out of the house as soon as possible. It is revealed that the fields around their house have previously seen the death of many animals and it now lies barren. Peter and Dick are much more scientific in their approach and decide an autopsy is required to satiate their curious minds. After Jo attempts to burn it, Peter locks it in a cupboard in their nursery-to-be and pretends he has thrown it away. The tension is ramped up as Dick brings his wife over for drinks and Jo and Peter’s relationship continues to be further stretched; the viewer, of course, simply wants to find out what the ‘thing’ is but Kneale keeps you hanging on for an eternity.

The ‘reveal’ is, of course, a disappointment but the build-up is second to none – Jo’s increasing hysteria and Dick and Peter’s bullish obliviousness are great devices. The lack of music highlights to remoteness of both the area and the people, witchcraft and the ways of the land outlasting both man and beast.